Page 25 of Hiding Hollywood

The peaceful mood dissipated as Cameron sat down beside her. He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “I followed up on a lead Mr. Stinson gave me yesterday.”

Sheriff Dempsey sat back. “A lead. That’s new. You didn’t mention that.”

Addie didn’t miss the accusation in his voice.

“His daughter’s car was parked on the side of their house. Might have been caught by the security cameras at the lumberyard,” Cameron added.

Something passed between the three of them. Mrs. Dempsey took a sip of her sweet tea as her gaze shifted between the two men.

“Did Kevin give you the video?” Sheriff Dempsey’s scowl matched his son’s.

“Nope.”

Oh well for a pleasant family dinner. Sheriff Dempsey grunted, and the next ten minutes were eaten almost exclusively in silence, despite Mrs. Dempsey’s efforts of carrying on the conversation.

Addie wanted to crawl back into her room and hide out from the family drama. No one got too excited about anything in her own family. Her parents vacationed around the world, hopping from ski resort to exclusive Caribbean bungalows. The payouts from their investments helped to fund an early retirement. The only emotion her parents showed at the dinner table was when the wine was served at the wrong temperature.

Mrs. Dempsey ate a few bites of her dinner, declared Addie’s chicken to be the best she’d ever had, and promptly rose and left out the back door.

As if the move was designed, Sheriff Dempsey followed after her.

Cameron stood, and Addie felt a snag of disappointment that he’d leave too. Instead, he grabbed two beers from the fridge. He opened both and set one in front of Addie.

“It’s the only way to get through this crap.”

Addie stared at the beer. There wasn’t an easy way to ask this. “I’m getting the feeling that there’s some history between your parents and whoever Kevin is.”

He laughed harshly before taking a long drink. “My mom chose my dad over Kevin almost forty years ago. Kevin hasn’t gotten over it. Never married. He acts as though my mom might run off with him at any moment. He’s been a pain in the ass for my dad ever since. He won’t cooperate with anything and still sends my mom Valentine’s Day cards and roses on the anniversary of their first date.”

“Wow.” She mimicked his move and took a long drink. When was the last time she’d had a beer? College, probably. Brian’s tastes included expensive wines and premium liquors. At what point had she completely lost her own identity? It was supposed to have been a superficial arrangement, but she’d become herHollywoodalter ego. Brian had molded her into what he wanted. It made ordinary moments when she didn’t need a cover, hard to handle.

They drank in silence, the murmur of his parents’ voices floating in through the screen door.

For that brief time, the wall between Addie and Cameron disappeared. Cameron motioned to the table. “Your chicken was good.” He skimmed a finger along the back of her hand over the bandage. “I still hate it you got hurt.”

She watched his finger instead of making eye contact. He had to be toying with her. The same way he joked about her glasses.

Mrs. Dempsey opened the door, shooting Addie a smile that looked forced. “I’m sorry about that. The past can’t stay buried, can it?”

Addie lifted a shoulder and took a drink of her beer. There was no way she’d get in the middle of that argument.

Cameron’s hand brushed over her knee under the table before it disappeared. She only choked a little on her drink, coughing a few times discretely while the cold brew burned in her throat. What was he up to? He’d gone a little farther than just being nice to her. Touching her. Kissing her boo-boos. Okay, that sounded a little strange, but it made it impossible to keep her typical wall erected.

His profile remained neutral. Unaffected. Opposite the reaction of every inch of her body. Finishing her beer, she rose and took her plate to the sink.

“Don’t worry about that, Addie. You cooked, the boys clean.”

Risking it, she looked at Cameron. He watched her with more interest than usual, despite the grim set to his lips. Did he feel the heat between them? Or was that only in her cheeks that had suddenly flushed?

Either way, she’d take the get-out-of-dishes card Mrs. Dempsey had offered her. “I enjoyed cooking with you.”

The tension drained from Mrs. Dempsey’s face. “Me, too, honey.”

Her eyes tracked back to Cameron. He rose, grabbing his dad’s half-eaten plate on the way by. “Guess I better get on the dishes. I still need to swing by and check-in on Lacy.”

“Is she doing any better?” Mrs. Dempsey asked.

His mention of Lacy threw out everything that had happened so far that evening. Why did she keep forgetting he had a girlfriend? Easy. He didn’t act like it.

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